


In Bed with the Doctor

by kelex



Category: Doctor Who (2005)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-06
Updated: 2014-01-06
Packaged: 2018-01-07 18:40:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,595
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1123081
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kelex/pseuds/kelex
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Rose has been in bed with the Doctor quite a few times, but not like you'd think.</p>
            </blockquote>





	In Bed with the Doctor

The first time Rose got in bed with the Doctor, it was completely platonic. Apparently the fine people of London, 1789, seemed to think that she and the Doctor were newlyweds. As in just married, to have and to hold, 'til death do us part, have you the rings, I now pronounce you man and wife _married._

Mostly because the Doctor's psychic paper had identified them as "Professor and Mrs. J. Smith," on holiday before "Professor Smith" begins the new term at Oxford.

The bed had been comfortable, and the Doctor didn't snore. He _was_ a bit of a blanket thief, but an extra quilt from the innkeeper's wife solved that problem, so Rose cheerfully curled up beside the Doctor.

Every morning, he was awake before Rose, but he stayed perfectly still. She was usually on her side, tucked up against him, her hand on his chest. He smelled her hair, her soap, the air that eased out of her lungs. He breathed her in every morning, and when he felt her waking he closed his eyes and feigned deep slumber.

He let her wake up first, humoring that insistent stupid ape idea she had of waking up hideous after sleep and wanting to clean up first.

Couldn't ever tell her that he watched her sleep, found her utterly beautiful no matter what, that the softness of her skin shone luminescent silver in the moonlight. That her waking up to live another day, to go on another adventure with him, was the most beautiful thing in existence. Couldn't tell her.

But in everything he did, he tried to show her.

\-----

The second time they shared a bed, it was Rose's choice.

"If you think for one moment that I'm sleepin' alone in this drafty, creepy empty alien castle, you got another think comin'. I'm staying right here with you." Her steely grip on the Doctor's arm certainly spoke to her intention of staying close, and she was clinging just as tightly to Captain Jack.

The ghostly steward--literally, the ectoplasmic remnant of the castle's blue-skinned steward--showed the trio to what used to be a master bedroom suite, complete with two beds. One was obviously big enough for two people, the other for one.

"Let's just push them all together, then!" was Rose's next idea--and the Doctor had the shrewd notion it wasn't out of fear. Rose was too smart to let fear rule her, so both he and Jack helped push the beds together.

Later, he found out why.

Rose was in the middle, tucked safely between Jack and the Doctor, when she spoke in the darkness. "Well, when you see nothing but ghosts, maybe it's better you don't go wandering about in the dark. And this way, I can keep my eyes on you."

Jack pinched her hip. "What was that? Sounds like you don't trust me."

Rose giggled and gave a half-hearted scoot away from Jack's curious hands. "You and the Doctor, wandering off every chance. Not lettin' you out of my sight."

Close to morning, Rose was asleep with her head on the Doctor's shoulder and legs tangled with Jack's.

"She always sleep like this? Dead to the world and cuddly as a teddy?"

In the darkness, the Doctor smiled. "Yeah, she does."

\------

The third time was the first.

Only a few days after Christmas, after the Sycorax, after the regeneration.

Rose was in the wardrobe, putting away the Doctor's old clothes. The black pants and green jumper got folded up and put in drawers, but she couldn't quite stop herself stroking the lapel of the leather U-boat jacket.

Out of habit, she checked the pockets. Sonic screwdriver was missing; already with the Doctor. There was a banana in the inside pocket. Of _course_ there was a banana. The outside hip pockets were empty, but the breast pocket held a surprise.

After hanging the jacket up, Rose carried her prize back to the TARDIS control room and handed it to the Doctor.

"Oh, Cardiff!" The Doctor took the photobooth strip, smiling. He'd found the booth during a run for milk, and he'd gleefully demanded that Rose get in with him. Then they'd dragged Jack in, cramming three adults into the booth for a strip of four photos.

Rose had kept the strip with Jack's photos, but she hadn't thought about the other strip until now, when she'd found it in the Doctor's jacket. She'd had no idea he'd kept it. She'd just assumed he'd given it to Jack.

And that's where they disappeared to again, the inner pocket of the Doctor's new suit. "Thanks for that," he continued with a grin, but said nothing else.

That much, at least, had not changed. For a man who could talk the ears off the universe, he could be obstinately taciturn when he wanted to be. 

Rose had turned to leave when the Doctor spoke again. "Really had fun that day, you know. Don't think I ever told you that."

"No, he--you didn't. But I knew it anyway."

The Doctor's answering smile was huge. "That's because you're brilliant, Rose Tyler."

Rose's smile turned heartfelt. "So are you, Doctor."

Later that evening, after Rose had put the jacket away, she came out of her bathroom to find the Doctor sitting on the bed--her bed--looking at the jacket. "Almost like armor, isn't it?" he asked, stroking over the slick surface. "Been through a lot, this has. Lot of it with you."

Rose finished wrapping the towel around her wet hair, then sat gingerly beside the Doctor. "Don't think I ever saw you without it," she agreed, and raised her hand to stroke his hair. "Really sexy, it was."

The Doctor laughed, but something about it was unpleasant. Mocking, almost ridiculing, and it was nothing she had ever heard from the Doctor before. "You know, I don't know how you put up with him--with me. Rose, you got no idea what you did for me. Who I was, what you started…" He held the jacket out to her. "You made it so I don't need it."

Rose took the jacket, got off the bed, and folded it over a hanger in her closet. Coming back to the bed was the easiest choice ever, and she put her arm around his shoulders. "Look, yeah. All right, rinding out you can change your face, that was a little bit weird. But you're still the Doctor, my Doctor. What's outside doesn't change what's inside you. I saw it, on the ship, with Harriet Jones, with Mum and Mickey and me at Christmas dinner."

The Doctor wrapped his arm around Rose, and leaned his head against her shoulder. "Post-regeneration neuronic confusion. Don't mind me."

She lifted her head and kissed his forehead. "My Doctor."

"Forever." But that brought a frown to his face as he got up from the bed. "Best get that old thing put away, figure out where we're going next."

Didn't stop when Rose called out to him.

Giving a groan, Rose flumped back onto the bed, the hair that leaked from the towel hanging over the side as she stared at the ceiling. Only allowed herself a moment or two of pouting, and then she went to look for him. She tied her dressing gown around her waist, took her hair out of the towel, and pushed her feet into unlaced trainers.

The wardrobe was empty, but the leather jacket had been returned. It was hanging neatly on a rack by itself. The TARDIS control room was also empty, which was a surprise. Rose wasn't exactly sure how many rooms the TARDIS actually had, but she was prepared to search all of them. 

But before she did all of that, she opened the door of the TARDIS. Half-expecting to see stars, Rose was surprised to see they were still on Earth. Not London, not Cardiff-on-the-rift, not really anywhere she recognized but still Earth nonetheless. Even more surprising, the Doctor was standing outside, looking up at the night sky. "Lookin' for a destination?" She sat down, tugging him down to sit beside her. Taking his hand, she rested their twined fingers on her upraised knee. "You mentioned Barcelona, and um, dogs with no noses?"

"Oh, yeah, we could go there." The Doctor put an arm around Rose and tucked her in against him. The TARDIS was warm and secure against his back, and Rose was warm and soft and safe beside him. In that single instant, he didn't want to leave. 

Rose, beautiful lovely Rose, took the decision out of the Doctor's hands. She stood up, reached down for both his hands, and pulled the Doctor to his feet. "Come on, then, let's go."

"Just where are we going, then?" The Doctor didn't resist.

"To bed," was Rose's surprising reply. "I'm tired, and you should still be resting. You said so yourself." There was only a hint of chastisement in her voice.

That wasn't a thought, or an order, that he could really argue with. So he followed Rose back into the TARDIS, locking the door safely behind him, and they were back in _their_ world.

Rose made sure to keep a tight grip on the Doctor's hand. She felt him try to pull away in the control room, but she didn't stop walking. Again at the library, a weak pull, but she pretended not to feel it. Last protest was at the door of her bedroom. Closing the door behind him was her unspoken signal that he was welcome in her space. That he always had been, and always would be. 

He sat on the edge of her bed again and watched as she got ready for sleep. Shoes got kicked off, towel got tossed in the bathroom, and robe got draped over the footboard. The Doctor was amused at her outfit--an oversized white t-shirt that could've belonged to him or Jack--either one was equally likely--and bright pink underwear.

And Rose met his eyes squarely in the mirror. "I've seen you naked, you know."

The Doctor nearly fell off the bed as he pitched forward. "What? What? What?"

Smirking, she dragged the hairbrush through her hair. "How else do you think you got into those pajamas?"

"Well, I actually never thought about it, and I really wish I hadn't because now I'm picturing your mum helping." And the Doctor's expression was such a comical mix of terror and disgust that even his eyes crinkled at the corners.

"No, just me," Rose reassured, laughing at the Doctor's face. "Wouldn't let Mum or Mickey near you 'til you were properly dressed."

"Thank you for that. Couldn't look Jackie in the face properly if she'd gotten a peek." The Doctor rubbed his jaw in relief. "Speaking of, best get out of your hair and into pajamas of my own if--"

"Stay?" The inflection of Rose's voice made it more demand than question, but the lilt at the end definitely made it a question, which meant a choice had to be made.

"Okay, yeah, I can do that, isn't weird at all. Done it loads before." The Doctor paced nervously behind Rose, then took the hairbrush out of her hand. Wrapping his arms around her, the Doctor hugged her tightly. "Rose Tyler, you are amazing."

Rose half-expected a kiss, and got the feeling that the Doctor might have been holding himself back for some reason. An instant later, it registered; he was trying to let her get used to the new face and not force her into the closeness they'd had before. "So are you, my Doctor."

Navigation to the bed had them both laughing, because neither one wanted to let go of the hug… so they didn't. They ended up in a tangle on the bed, flustered and giggling like teenagers. So it felt completely natural for Rose to kiss her Doctor. Just a gentle, friendly kiss, like the one Jack had given her back on Satellite 5--without the tongue. "Now, no more fussin'. Sleep, Doctor, an' that's an order."

He slept.

\-----

The fourth time was the last time Rose ever slept alone.

The sudden and unexpected appearance of Sarah-Jane Smith had set Rose thinking, and Mickey tagging along hadn't made it any better. At least the TARDIS had cooperated by making Mickey's bedroom very far away from hers.

She was finally able to corner the Doctor alone, in the TARDIS control room. "So did you at least say goodbye to her this time?"

"Course I did." He didn't look up from the controls. "Proper goodbye, complete with a hug and everything. Even left her a going-away present."

Rose didn't spare a single thought for K-9. "That what you do, leave them off at home when it gets dangerous, like you done to me? Go off and find somebody new? That what you meant for me?"

At that, the Doctor raised his eyes to meet Rose head-on. "I wasn't going to let you die. The Daleks took everything else I ever loved, I wasn't letting them have you, too. And I wasn't about to let you watch me die."

"Oh, I get it. So it's better for me to imagine it, right? Dream up something I can't get out of my head, live with it the rest of my life?" Rose's hands were on her hips. "That's better than--"

"Than you dying? Yes!" The Doctor's hand slammed down on the console. "You, still alive somewhere in the universe is totally worth my being gone! Even if I die, or grow into another face, knowing that Rose Tyler is alive and well is the one thing that will keep me going, forever."

"But I'll still die someday!" The shouted echo bounced around the control room like a ricochet.

"Of old age, with kids and-and-and grandchildren and a dog and a tea cozy after living years of a life that I'll never have and can never give you."

Rose circled the control room until she was face-to-face with the Doctor. "If you can't have that life then I don't want that life, either. My life is with you, Doctor, and that's how it's going to end."

The Doctor's hands grabbed Rose's bicep. "I'll watch you die, you know that. You will die, and I will have to watch that," he grated out harshly. 

"But only after you watched me live, lived it all _with_ me. A life we make _together,_ " she stressed. "It's maybe not that long to you, but it's a lifetime to me! Decades, Doctor, that we get to spend together." Rose could tell from his expression that that particular thought hadn't occurred to the Doctor, the man who usually anticipated everything and was determined to live to the fullest. "Every day is a chance to make a new memory." 

"Then this is a memory I want to have." With that, he brought his head down until they were nearly touching. "Long as you do, I mean." 

"You're an idiot, you know that? Brilliant, but an idiot," Rose laughed softly, closing the short distance and placing her lips against his. 

"That's a yes, then?" His words were muffled as he spoke them almost directly into her mouth.

"Yes, that's a yes." Rose's hands slid into the Doctor's hair and anchored there, holding him in place as he kissed her. His arms wrapped around Rose and hauled her in tight, bodies fitting so closely together there was no space between them. 

It wasn't enough, not _nearly_ enough. It had been there from day one, the attraction between Rose and the Doctor. She'd seen him angry, jealous, protective, but nothing like this. Both of his hearts were pounding against her chest, and Rose was almost burning to get closer to the Doctor. 

She squealed when the Doctor picked her up. It was unexpected, but she clung to his neck as he carried her through the TARDIS. The trip to Rose's bedroom passed in a blur, mostly because he wouldn't take his eyes off of her. Rose was just as guilty, searching her Doctor's face for anything and finding only a tentative wanting that matched her own.

Gently the Doctor placed Rose on the bed, and without hesitation crawled in beside her. She was already yanking at the lapels of his suit, and he was busy undoing the knot of his tie. 

Rose giggled, realizing they were working at cross-purposes in a jumble of arms, and soon the Doctor had the same realization and was laughing with her. His laughter just set her off again, and they spent many moments just trying to calm down. Finally, _finally_ , they were collapsed breathless on the bed together. Rose was just able to turn her head and see the Doctor grinning at her. "Tell you what. I'll do me, and you do you."

"Well, that's no fun," the Doctor replied, but his grin belied the pout of the words. "But on the up side I probably won't kill myself with my own tie this time." And speaking of, the Doctor's fingers quickly finished unknotting his tie and dropped the strip of fabric onto Rose's chest. 

"Might be more fun later," she pointed out, rolling onto her stomach and cupping her chin in her hands. "Didn't get to watch you put it on."

The Doctor's eyebrow quirked upwards, but he didn't stop. The suit jacket came off quickly, four buttons offering no resistance. No vest underneath, just a crisp white shirt tucked into the slacks, and those buttons gave way with a string of muffled pops. 

Rose had never really seen the Doctor without his suit before, and she was struck by how skinny and fragile he looked unclothed--even partially. It made her feel all the more determined to take care of him. 

And while she had been musing, the Doctor had finished undressing. He stood a little awkwardly, as if waiting for judgment. Rose got to her knees and pulled him over, kissing him again and again. Sweet, hot, desperate little kisses trailed down his jaw, across his chin, over his lips. 

That seemed to do wonders for the Doctor's confidence, because he melted under the kisses. His fingers stroked through Rose's hair, separating the strands between his fingers. "Your turn," he whispered in her ear. 

She almost asked for what, but her brain caught up before she vocalized the thought. "My turn," she agreed, pushing him away as she settled back on her heels. The blue pirate t-shirt went sailing, barely skimming the tips of his hair. He ducked, giggling. "Sorry!" she called out, entirely unapologetic.

"You're really not!" he called out before tackling her back onto the bed. Tickling, a revenge tickling was his intention, and his fingers went straight for her ribs. 

"Totally not!" she squealed, her body whipping and squirming as he tickled her. In the back of her mind, Rose was realizing that nothing else in her life had been like this, happy and laughing and carefree and easy. Not even Mickey. 

Somehow, during the tickling, Rose's bra had come undone, and she chucked it to the floor. Arching her back and lifting her hips let Rose wiggle out of both jeans and panties at the same time, only to kick them off in a tangled wad. 

Suddenly they were both naked, and their bodies touched. A brush of elbow against stomach, bare knee against bare knee, and they both froze. Suddenly aware of where they were and what they were about to do, and Rose wasn't about to stop. She looped her arms around the Doctor's neck with an abrupt thought. "Can we really do this? I mean, are we…. You know. Compatible?"

The Doctor grinned down at her, amusement bright in his eyes even as his hair flopped down over his forehead. 'You think of that now? Course we are. At least, what, 90%? Your music, though…"

A laugh, then, relieved, and Rose smacked the Doctor's arm. "I meant physically!"

Finally, a bit of seriousness from the Doctor. "I know. And I'd never hurt you."

That was enough for Rose, and she yanked him down for another kiss.

\-----

Rose woke the next morning, curled tightly around the Doctor. He was smiling in his sleep, and at some point in the night they'd joined hands. Rolling onto her side, she raised onto her elbow to look down at the Doctor.

In sleep, he looked young, his face unguarded and open. There was a softness that his features usually lacked, but she couldn't quite define it, just see it. And his hair was amazingly tousled; not a single strand pointed in the same direction as any other.

She didn't want to wake him, so she carefully disengaged herself from the Doctor, stifling the urge to kiss his hand as she let it fall back to the bed. She gathered their dirty clothes together, pitched his suit and her jeans into the laundry. That was a nice sight, their clothes mingled like they had been, and Rose closed the bathroom door so the sound of the shower wouldn't wake him. 

As soon as the door closed, the Doctor's eyes opened. _Rose Tyler, I love you._ He almost whispered it to the open air, but kept it inside. Love didn't have to be spoken to be shown, and he intended to show it every day. 

When Rose came out of the bathroom, the Doctor was beaming at her, his hands laced behind his head. "So, where would you like to go today?"

-Fin


End file.
